Why ALMS is Different - Mentor Programs for Young Adults: ALMS Job Readiness Mentor Program
All Leaders Must Serve (ALMS) is a nonprofit California mentoring organization dedicated to empowering young adults ages 15-25. We achieve this through our transformative job training programs, which not only equip young adults but also provide ongoing support throughout their early adult life after they graduate from high school and college.
ALMS stands out from other mentor organizations. While others may focus on the needs of young children, our goal is to provide employability services to any young person in high school, out-of-school, attending community college, or a four-year college who needs assistance. We understand that securing a job is just the beginning, and that maintaining and excelling in a job or career can be challenging when a young adult lacks the basics of soft skills.
Soft skills are not just desirable, they are essential. Every employer expects a new employee to possess these skills before hiring them. Yet, too often, new employees are unaware of this, as neither parents nor schools emphasized soft skills to young people during the high school years.
In an average home, when it's time to go to school, parents may wake their student, and the youth may choose what they will wear – unless there's a school uniform. Parents may have breakfast prepared – if they eat breakfast - and a car, bus, or friend may be waiting for them to take them to school. If the student is sick, pretends to be, or has another reason for being unable to attend class that day, their parents call the school, and that is that.
Now the same young adult is expected to get themselves up, out the door, and arrive at work showered, dressed appropriately, groomed, and on time. Self-discipline may not have been taught, explained, or expected in the past. Yet, now those skills are expected to be successfully applied because money is involved. It's not only an unfair expectation, but it also sets our new employees up for failure; thus, the fear of failure only grows when it proves to be true.
Soft skills also include the ability to get along with coworkers and work effectively as a team. But if you learned to isolate and find comfort on your social media, it isn't easy to know how to take your job seriously. Work ethic demonstrates that being a hard worker is something you value for yourself as well as for your employer. If young adults leave their job to find a better one, it's like getting a divorce without realizing your part in the breakup. Young people must understand that the problem will follow them until they develop a strong work ethic, cultivate their character, and learn how to communicate effectively by asking questions and expressing their feelings to others.
Employers need to understand that this is what our young people are struggling with. Until we begin to communicate our willingness to listen, we could potentially be losing some of the best employees in our community.
The ALMS mentor programs for young adults provide mentors who play a crucial role in the success of our programs. These mentors listen without judgment, offering guidance and support to the young adults. They become the grandparents, uncles, and aunts who believe in the youth until they can believe in themselves. We operate in groups of three to ten, depending on the activity and/or program, and we allow the youth to choose who they feel comfortable with based on our stories, skill set, experiences, common family background or culture, and our concern for their success.
When a young adult does not trust others, but they believe you have something they need, they are willing to listen to what you have to say, at least once. Once may be the only chance you get to share your authenticity, so it is wise to offer your personal story – the one that you don't usually tell because it's embarrassing. But actually, it's those awkward moments that make you real to others. It's the pieces that make you unique from everyone else, and it's usually what causes someone to relate to and choose you as the person they trust as their mentor.
My personal story reveals a little history, a little about abuse and mental health in my family, and my experience of injustice and shame. But they can see that I rose above those things, which means they can too! My story encourages students to know that no matter what has happened to them, they are not alone, and Ms. Jayne will not judge them. As founder and Executive Director, I share my story with the youth when introducing ALMS mentor programs, so they know how passionate and honest I am about serving them. I want the young adults to know that ALMS is not just a job, but we have faith in them and in who they are meant to become. If it is the only thing they remember about Ms. Jayne, I want them to remember that!
What is it that you want the young adults that you mentor to remember about you? How much are you willing to humble yourself before you expect the young adults to trust you and listen to what you have to share? Mentors must model the way through our understanding and stories of pain, shame, isolation, loss, rejection, anxiety, and/or depression, before we expect young adults to want what we offer as mentors.
ALMS offers more than just a listening ear to young adults through mentor programs for adults. We provide adult mentors who are trained to serve others by sharing their personal stories of failure and success. We put ourselves out there and demonstrate that the path to success is through failure and perseverance, not giving up. Life continues to march on. Young adults are at the beginning of the journey. They will go through the school of life either alone or with the wisdom of adult mentors who have shared parts of their trip, their pitfalls, and their celebrations giving hope to the young adults who learn soft skills, self-discipline, self-reliance, and building character so that they may one day turn around and provide that information and more to the next generation.
Mentoring isn't just about spending time with someone; it's about investing in their growth and development. It's about giving them a piece of what made the mentor who they are. It's about planting a seed in the ground and watching it take root and grow into a strong tree with many branches, that will one day feed many more.
If you want to learn more, or if you would like to donate to youth mentorship, contact Jayne Williams at jayne@almsinyolo.org or www.AllLeadersMustServe.org/donate
